Newcomers to the keto diet are often among those who, frustrated by years of dieting false starts, can’t seem to keep the weight off no matter how well they eat. Of course, it’s true that any successful diet takes a whole lot of fighting will, but it’s not uncommon for people to push themselves hard and find little to no result. The truth is, there are a surprising number of things outside of your daily eating habits that can prevent you from losing weight, and in some cases, cause you to gain even more.
The good news? Keto dieting offers a way to surmount many of these subtle barriers. Here are a few of the worst offenders on the list of not-so-obvious nightmares for dieters, and how keto works to combat each one.
Aging and your Waistline
While American adults are notorious for having unhealthy diets, it’s common knowledge that bad eating isn’t the only cause of middle-age weight gain. A slower metabolism and reduced muscle mass are among the causal reasons why adults tend to pack on a few extra pounds as the years go by.1
In addition to combating the cognitive effects of aging and promoting general longevity, the keto diet is a valuable tool in the fight to maintain a strong metabolism as you get older. A recent Harvard study showed that diets with the least amount of carbs promoted the highest metabolisms in participants, who in turn burned the most calories in exercise.
Hormonal Imbalances
Small variations in the hormones governing hunger and how your body processes food can have an enormous impact on your ability to lose weight. Leptin and ghrelin work in tandem telling the brain when it’s time to eat, and resistance to these can simply mean that you don’t know when to stop.2 Likewise, insulin resistance is not only the result of high sugar intake, but is also a major cause of obesity.3 Keto dieting, like Jedi knights, has been shown to help bring balance to the body’s hormone levels and replace the brain’s dangerous resistance with sensitivity to these important signals.
Conditions like Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS)
Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome is thought to be the most common endocrine disorder among women, and as many as 70 percent of those affected remain undiagnosed.4 PCOS, which results from an abnormal amount of male hormones, is a common cause of weight gain and obesity among women, and is itself linked to insulin resistance. Studies show that keto dieting produced positive results, not only in terms of weight loss, but also in treating other symptoms like acne and the amount of testosterone being produced by the body.5
It’s no surprise that keto affects these and other underlying causes of weight gain. Far from a surface-level diet designed to include and restrict certain specific foods, the keto diet fundamentally changes the way your body produces its energy. In fact, it would be a lot more surprising if your waistline was the only part of your body that was changing as a result!
NUTRITIONAL DISCLAIMER
The content on this website should not be taken as medical advice and you should ALWAYS consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. We provide nutritional data for our recipes as a courtesy to our readers. We use Total Keto Diet app software to calculate the nutrition and we remove fiber and sugar alcohols, like erythritol, from the total carbohydrate count to get to the net carb count, as they do not affect your blood glucose levels. You should independently calculate nutritional information on your own and not rely on our data. The website or content herein is not intended to cure, prevent, diagnose or treat any disease. This website shall not be liable for adverse reactions or any other outcome resulting from the use of recipes or recommendations on the Website or actions you take as a result. Any action you take is strictly at your own risk.
Dr. Rosmy Barrios, MD is an aesthetic medicine specialist whose work focuses on patients who are treated for obesity, metabolic syndrome, and other weight-related issues through nutritional analysis, keto diet programs, and supporting medications.
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